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Abstract:

Conference calls are managed using a permanent or default password
associated with a particular call-in phone number and at least one
temporary, dynamically-generated password for that same call-in phone
number. The temporary passwords are preferably applicable for a
particular time period or interval. If a temporary password is not
defined for the time period in which a conference call takes place, the
default password may be used. Conference call access is restricted to
participants who provide the proper password--namely, the temporary
password during a time period for which a temporary password has been
generated, and the default password otherwise.

Claims:

1. A computer-implemented method of managing conference calls,
comprising:associating, with a particular call-in conference call number,
a default password and at least one temporary password, wherein each
temporary password corresponds to a different time period; andrestricting
access to a conference call that uses the particular call-in conference
call number, further comprising:comparing each participant-provided
password to the temporary password corresponding to a particular time
period in which the participant calls in using the particular call-in
conference call number, if one of the at least one temporary passwords
associated with the particular call-in conference call number corresponds
to the particular time period, and comparing the participant-provided
password to the default password associated with the particular call-in
conference call number otherwise; andgranting each participant access to
the conference call only if the comparing matches that participant's
participant-provided password to the compared-to password.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein each temporary password is
generated responsive to supplying the particular call-in conference call
number and the corresponding time period to a password generator.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the password generator
comprises a network-accessible service.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the default password is also
supplied to the password generator and serves to authenticate a requester
who requests the password generator to generate the temporary password.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein:the restricting restricts
access to a plurality of conference calls that each use the particular
call-in conference call number; andthe granting grants each participant
access to that one of the conference calls for which the comparing
matches that participant's participant-provided password to the
compared-to password.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the restricting denies access
to the conference call to any participant who provides one of the at
least one temporary passwords corresponding to a time period other than
the particular time period in which the participant calls in using the
particular call-in conference call number.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:generating a
conference call invitation, for each of at least one invited participant
of the conference call, wherein the generated conference call invitation
specifies (i) that one of the at least one temporary passwords which is
associated with the particular call-in conference call number and which
corresponds to a time period at which the conference call is scheduled or
(ii) the default password associated with the particular call-in
conference call number when no temporary password corresponds to the time
period at which the conference call is scheduled.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:sending each
generated conference call invitation to the invited participant for whom
the invitation was generated.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the sending is performed by an
electronic calendar application.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the associating associates
each of the at least one temporary passwords responsive to invoking, from
an electronic calendar application, a password generator.

11. A system for managing conference calls, comprising:means for
associating in computer-accessible storage, with a particular call-in
conference call number, a default password and at least one temporary
password, wherein each temporary password corresponds to a different time
period; andmeans for restricting access to a plurality of conference
calls that each use the particular call-in conference call number,
further comprising:means for comparing each participant-provided password
to the temporary password corresponding to a particular time period in
which the participant calls in to one of the conference calls using the
particular call-in conference call number, if one of the at least one
temporary passwords associated with the particular call-in conference
call number corresponds to the particular time period, and for comparing
the participant-provided password to the default password associated with
the particular call-in conference call number otherwise; andmeans for
granting each participant access to that one of the conference calls for
which the means for comparing matches that participant's
participant-provided password to the compared-to password only if the
means for comparing matches that participant's participant-provided
password to the compared-to password.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein each temporary password is
generated responsive to supplying the particular call-in conference call
number, the corresponding time period, and the default password to a
password generator, wherein the default password serves to authenticate,
to the password generator, a requester who requests the password
generator to generate the temporary password.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the password generator
comprises a network-accessible service.

14. The system according to claim 11, wherein the means for restricting
denies access to the one of the conference calls to any participant who
provides one of the at least one temporary passwords corresponding to a
time period other than the particular time period in which the
participant calls in using the particular call-in conference call number.

15. The system according to claim 11, further comprising:means for
generating a conference call invitation, for each of at least one invited
participant of a selected one of the conference calls, wherein the
generated conference call invitation specifies (i) that one of the at
least one temporary passwords which is associated with the particular
call-in conference call number and which corresponds to a time period at
which the selected conference call is scheduled or (ii) the default
password associated with the particular call-in conference call number
when no temporary password corresponds to the time period at which the
selected conference call is scheduled; andmeans for sending each
generated conference call invitation to the invited participant for whom
the invitation was generated.

16. A computer program product for managing conference calls, the computer
program product embodied on one or more computer-usable media and
comprising computer-readable program code for:associating, with a
particular call-in conference call number, a default password and at
least one temporary password, wherein each temporary password corresponds
to a different time period; andrestricting access to a plurality of
conference calls that each use the particular call-in conference call
number, further comprising:comparing each participant-provided password
to the temporary password corresponding to a particular time period in
which the participant calls in to one of the conference calls using the
particular call-in conference call number, if one of the at least one
temporary passwords associated with the particular call-in conference
call number corresponds to the particular time period, and comparing the
participant-provided password to the default password associated with the
particular call-in conference call number otherwise; andgranting each
participant access to that one of the conference calls for which the
comparing matches that participant's participant-provided password to the
compared-to password only if the comparing matches that participant's
participant-provided password to the compared-to password.

17. The computer program product according to claim 16, wherein each
temporary password is generated responsive to supplying the particular
call-in conference call number, the corresponding time period, and the
default password to a password generator, wherein the default password
serves to authenticate, to the password generator, a requester who
requests the password generator to generate the temporary password.

18. The computer program product according to claim 16, wherein the
restricting denies access to the one of the conference calls to any
participant who provides one of the at least one temporary passwords
corresponding to a time period other than the particular time period in
which the participant calls in using the particular call-in conference
call number.

19. The computer program product according to claim 16, further comprising
computer-readable program code for:generating a conference call
invitation, for each of at least one invited participant of a selected
one of the conference calls, wherein the generated conference call
invitation specifies (i) that one of the at least one temporary passwords
which is associated with the particular call-in conference call number
and which corresponds to a time period at which the selected conference
call is scheduled or (ii) the default password associated with the
particular call-in conference call number when no temporary password
corresponds to the time period at which the selected conference call is
scheduled; andsending each generated conference call invitation to the
invited participant for whom the invitation was generated.

20. The computer program product according to claim 16, wherein the
associating associates each of the at least one temporary passwords
responsive to invoking, from an electronic calendar application, a
password generator.

Description:

[0002]Telephone conference calls are used extensively in many people's
daily work. Many people have their own personally-assigned call-in phone
number and corresponding password for hosting conference calls, and use
this number and password in all of the conference calls they host. Some
people, such as managers of employees or project managers, may host many
meetings by conference call, with one meeting scheduled to start right
after another meeting ends.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003]The present invention defines techniques for managing conference
calls. In one embodiment, this comprises: associating, with a particular
call-in conference call number, a default password and at least one
temporary password, wherein each temporary password corresponds to a
different time period; and restricting access to a conference call that
uses the particular call-in conference call number. Restricting the
access preferably further comprises: comparing each participant-provided
password to the temporary password corresponding to a particular time
period in which the participant calls in using the particular call-in
conference call number, if one of the at least one temporary passwords
associated with the particular call-in conference call number corresponds
to the particular time period, and comparing the participant-provided
password to the default password associated with the particular call-in
conference call number otherwise; and granting each participant access to
the conference call only if the comparing matches that participant's
participant-provided password to the compared-to password.

[0004]In another aspect, the restricting restricts access to a plurality
of conference calls that each use the particular call-in conference call
number, and the granting grants each participant access to that one of
the conference calls for which the comparing matches the
participant-provided password to the compared-to password.

[0005]Embodiments of these and other aspects of the present invention may
also, or alternatively, be provided as systems or computer program
products. It should be noted that the foregoing is a summary and thus
contains, by necessity, simplifications, generalizations, and omissions
of detail; consequently, those skilled in the art will appreciate that
the summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way
limiting. Other aspects, inventive features, and advantages of the
present invention, as defined by the appended claims, will become
apparent in the non-limiting detailed description set forth below.

[0006]The present invention will be described with reference to the
following drawings, in which like reference numbers denote the same
element throughout.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007]FIG. 1 provides a sample graphical user interface ("GUI") which may
be used to schedule a conference call from within an electronic calendar
application;

[0008]FIG. 2 depicts a GUI of an electronic calendar application showing
information pertaining to conference calls in which the calendar owner is
scheduled to participate;

[0009]FIGS. 3 and 5 provide flowcharts depicting logic which may be used
when implementing an embodiment of the present invention;

[0010]FIG. 4 illustrates sample data structures that may be used for
storing information used by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0011]FIG. 6 depicts a data processing system suitable for storing and/or
executing program code; and

[0012]FIG. 7 depicts a representative networking environment in which one
or more embodiments of the present invention may be used.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013]The present invention provides enhancements for managing access to
telephone conference calls. Typically, a company or person that uses
conference calls for telephone meetings enlists the services of a
designated conference call provider, which provides the underlying
technology for--among other things--providing the physical access to the
phone conversation and managing the call-in numbers and passwords. (The
term "password", as used herein, may alternatively be referred to as a
"passcode".) Usually, a person who will host a conference call contacts
the designated conference call provider to schedule a call. As a result,
the conference call provider sends back--for each such request--a call-in
number and a password associated with that call-in number. Typically, the
person scheduling the call then copies and pastes this information into
an electronic calendar application which generates the conference call
invitation and sends the invitation to all invited participants.

[0014]In one existing approach, a single call-in phone number and
associated password are assigned to a person who will host one or more
conference calls. This person will then reuse the same call-in phone
number and associated password if he or she schedules multiple conference
calls. No extra setup is then required when the person subsequently has
additional conference calls to schedule. Instead, to schedule a
conference call among participants using an electronic calendar
application, he or she manually fills in the already-assigned call-in
number and its associated password in the calendar invitation
information. When the invitations are programmatically generated by the
calendar application, the call-in number and password are included and
then sent out to the identified participants.

[0015]As an existing alternative to reusing a call-in number and password,
a new call-in number and associated password may be used for each
conference call. However, the person scheduling the conference call must
repeatedly contact the designated conference call provider to obtain the
call-in numbers and the password associated therewith, and must then use
each of these separate pairs of information when generating meeting
invitations for the participants in the various conference calls. This is
inconvenient, as many tedious and manual steps are involved, especially
for managers or project managers who hold many meetings by conference
call and are usually very busy. In addition, the person hosting a
sequence of meetings when using this approach has to separately dial in
to each meeting using the call-in number (and password) for that
particular meeting, which is time-consuming.

[0016]As previously mentioned, many people who host conference calls may
schedule one meeting to begin right after another meeting ends. However,
problems may arise if a single call-in phone number and its associated
password are re-used for each of the meetings. When one conference
meeting runs over its scheduled time, people for the next conference call
may start to call in. If the same call-in number and password are used,
people calling in for the upcoming meeting are able to hear the
conversation of the meeting that has not yet ended, which is undesirable.
In addition, when the same call-in phone number and password are used
repeatedly, someone who remembers this information from a previously-held
call may surreptitiously gain access to subsequently-scheduled calls to
which he or she has not been invited.

[0017]These problems are not limited to conference calls having a number
of participants. A similar situation may occur, for example, if managers
schedule one-on-one phone meetings with individual ones of their
employees using a single call-in number for each such phone meeting. In
this situation, personal and confidential information may be discussed
between the manager and the employee, and it is undesirable that a second
employee dials in while the first employee is still conversing with the
manager because the second employee may hear some of the personal and/or
confidential information.

[0018]An embodiment of the present invention manages conference calls by
providing access thereto in a secure manner, whereby security control
over telephone conference calls is provided using dynamically-assigned
passwords. In an optional aspect, embodiments of the present invention
enhance integration between conference call provider systems used by
conference call providers and electronic calendar applications used by
conference call participants, as will be described.

[0019]An embodiment of the present invention dynamically assigns one or
more temporary passwords to a single call-in number, even if a permanent
password has already been assigned for that call-in number. Using
techniques disclosed herein, a conference call provider assigns a
permanent password (also referred to herein as a "default" password) for
each call-in number when the call-in number is initially allocated in
response to a request, and a new temporary password is dynamically
generated for each separate conference call that will reuse a call-in
number. In one approach, a password generator (which may be deployed, for
example, as a network-accessible service) generates a temporary password
(also referred to herein as a "dynamic" password) using a call-in number
and a time period value.

[0020]An embodiment of the present invention stores the generated
temporary password, and uses that stored value as the call-in password
during the specified time period. If a conference call is held during a
time period for which there is no stored temporary password, then the
default password associated with (i.e., assigned to) the call-in phone
number is used as the call-in password.

[0021]In one approach, a calendar application may provide a graphical
button (or similar representation) on its user interface, and the person
who is using the calendar application to schedule a conference call may
then activate this graphical button to invoke the password generator that
generates temporary passwords. See reference number 110 in FIG. 1, which
illustrates a graphical button usable for this purpose on the sample GUI
100. Reference number 120 depicts, in this sample GUI, how the person
scheduling the conference call may indicate the time period during which
the call is to be scheduled.

[0022]A call-in phone number is illustrated at 140. In one embodiment,
this call-in phone number has already been allocated to this meeting
scheduler, and the meeting scheduler provides this call-in phone number
140 to the conference call provider along with the time period
information (illustrated at 120). The permanent password for this call-in
phone number is also preferably supplied to the password generator (not
illustrated in FIG. 1), and may be used to authenticate the requester of
the dynamic password. As one alternative, a special "moderator password"
may be used, whereby the person scheduling the meeting is given a special
password that is associated with this call-in phone number and that is
distinct from the default password (and which is not to be shared with
other meeting participants). This moderator password can then be used to
authenticate the meeting scheduler when he or she requests generation of
a dynamic password (and may also be used by the meeting scheduler to
authenticate the meeting scheduler when he or she calls in to a
conference call).

[0023]In response to an invocation, the password generator generates a
temporary password and returns it to the caller (i.e., to the electronic
calendar application, in this scenario). See reference number 150 of FIG.
1, which represents a sample temporary password value of "349056". This
temporary password is then programmatically added to the
programmatically-generated invitations which are created by the
electronic calendar application. (As one alternative to this described
integration between the password generator and the electronic calendar
application, the password generator may be invoked from outside the
electronic calendar application, and the temporary password may then be
added manually to the invitations by the person scheduling the meeting.)

[0024]See FIG. 2, which illustrates the electronic calendar of a sample
person who participates in many conference calls throughout the day. For
the particular day illustrated on GUI 200, there are calendar entries for
5 different conference calls which are scheduled for this person. See
reference numbers 210-250.

[0025]As can be seen by inspection, the calendar entries 210-250 depicted
on GUI 200 each indicate a call-in phone number and an associated
password. In this example, the call-in phone number "1-800-234-5678" is
reused for each call. (See, for example, the value that follows the topic
specified in each calendar entry. For example, in calendar entry 210, the
topic is "One to One with John", and the call-in phone number follows
this topic information.) Each of this person's first 3 conference calls
are scheduled one right after another, as can be seen by the starting and
ending times in calendar entries 210-230. Accordingly, the meeting
scheduler has obtained dynamic passwords for use by participants calling
in to each meeting, using techniques disclosed herein. See the "PSW"
values (i.e., the password values) represented in calendar entries
210-230, which specify values of "123456", "349056", and "784563",
respectively. The meeting host will therefore be able to continue using
the same phone call for all 3 conference calls while limiting access to
those participants who provide the correct dynamic password, thereby
preventing callers from inadvertently hearing information from a
separately-scheduled meeting that uses that same call-in phone number.

[0026]Note that the "PSW" value for calendar entry 220 is "349056". This
meeting is scheduled to occur between 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., and
corresponds to the meeting scheduling scenario depicted in FIG. 1.
Accordingly, the dynamic password obtained from the password generator
(as discussed above with reference to 150 of FIG. 1) is reflected in the
corresponding calendar entry when the meeting is scheduled on the
electronic calendars of the meeting participants, as shown in calendar
entry 220.

[0027]Note also that the information of the form illustrated at 210-250
may be provided on the electronic calendar of the person hosting the
conference calls, and this form of information is also preferably
provided on the electronic calendar of the invited meeting participants.
While the meeting host is not required to enter separate dynamic
passwords for authenticating himself for each meeting, providing the
dynamic passwords on the electronic calendar entries for the meeting host
may be useful (for example) in case an invited meeting participant loses
the dynamic password for a particular meeting and contacts the meeting
host for that information.

[0028]In some cases, it may happen that the person scheduling a meeting
does not need to protect access to the conference call using a dynamic
password. For example, the 2 conference calls represented by calendar
entries 240, 250 are separated in time by 30 minutes. The meeting
scheduler may therefore choose to use the permanent password for those
meetings. See calendar entries 240, 250, where this permanent password is
illustrated as having a "PSW" value of "322124". Referring again to FIG.
1, a graphical check-box is illustrated at reference number 130. The
meeting scheduler may check this box (or use another indication means
such as a "Use Default" graphical button) to indicate that the default
password is to be used with the call-in number when scheduling a
particular conference call. In that situation, the password generator is
not invoked, and the invitations are generated using the default
password.

[0029]Referring now to FIG. 3, a flowchart is shown depicting logic which
may be used when implementing an embodiment of the present invention for
scheduling a meeting to be held by conference call (i.e., for scheduling
a conference call). This process begins by invoking the meeting scheduler
logic in an electronic calendar application (Block 300). Block 305 asks
whether the default password will be used for the meeting (e.g.,
responsive to the meeting scheduler checking box 130 in FIG. 1). If so,
then Block 310 schedules the conference call meeting using the default
password (e.g., by sending invitations to each invited meeting
participant, where those invitations provide the call-in phone number and
the default password), and the processing of FIG. 3 ends at 315.

[0030]Otherwise, when the test in Block 305 has a negative result, control
reaches Block 320 which indicates that a new temporary password will be
generated. In one approach, a network-accessible password generator may
be located dynamically, as shown at Block 330 which refers to a "web
service" and tests to see if a search for such web service is successful.
Web services are known in the art, and existing techniques may be used
for contacting a network-accessible registry to locate a registered
password generator of the type disclosed herein. As one alternative to
contacting a network-accessible registry, configuration information of
the electronic calendar application may specify a location (such as a
uniform resource locator, or "URL") for contacting a password generator
that generates temporary passwords and associates them with call-in phone
numbers for conference calls, as disclosed herein.

[0031]Block 335 indicates that input parameters provided to the password
generator comprise, in one embodiment, a call-in conference phone number,
a default password that was previously associated with that conference
number, and a scheduled time period for the conference call (as has been
discussed above with reference to FIG. 1).

[0032]If a password generator cannot be located, the test in Block 330 has
a negative result, and an error message is preferably displayed to the
meeting scheduler (Block 325) on the GUI of the calendar application. If
the test in Block 330 has a positive result, on the other hand, then
processing continues at Block 340, which saves the temporary password
generated by the password generator. Preferably, the temporary password
is also displayed on the GUI of the calendar application. Block 345 then
schedules the conference call meeting using this temporary password
(e.g., by sending invitations to each meeting participant, where those
invitations provide the call-in phone number and the temporary password)
and the processing of FIG. 3 ends at 350.

[0033]FIG. 4 shows one approach which may be used for storing call-in
phone numbers and passwords for use with an embodiment of the present
invention. A tabular data structure 400 is shown, by way of illustration
but not of limitation. In this example, the data structure 400 has 3
columns, namely a call-in phone number column 405, a default password
column 410, and a temporary password indicator column 415. (When using a
moderator password as has been previously discussed, an additional column
is preferably provided for storing this moderator password.) Data
structure 400 may have a plurality of rows, and the example illustrates 2
rows 420, 425. Each row stores a particular call-in phone number, the
default password associated with that call-in phone number, and an
indication of whether or not any temporary passwords are associated with
this call-in phone number. For this example, row 420 indicates (using an
arrow 421) a link to an associated data structure 450 where temporary
password information for call-in phone number "1-800-234-5678" is stored,
whereas column 415 is depicted as empty (see 426) for row 425 to indicate
that there is no temporary password information associated with call-in
phone number "1-555-345-6767".

[0034]Referring now to data structure 450, a tabular structure is shown in
this example (by way of illustration but not of limitation), and
comprises 3 columns. In particular, sample data structure 450 comprises a
starting time period column 455, an ending time period column 460, and a
temporary password column 465. Data structure 450 may have a plurality of
rows, and the example illustrates 3 rows 470, 475, 480. Each row stores a
starting time period, an ending time period, and a temporary password to
be used in that time period or interval (i.e., between the starting time
period and the ending time period). In this sample data structure 450,
rows 470-480 correspond to calendar entries 210-230 of FIG. 2. For
example, row 475 indicates that the temporary password to be used between
9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on a particular day, when calling in to phone
number "1-800-234-5678", is "349056" (as discussed above with reference
to 150 of FIGS. 1 and 220 of FIG. 2).

[0035]So, for example, a participant who has been given the temporary
password "123456" for call-in phone number "1-800-234-5678" can call in,
and be granted access, during the time interval from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30
a.m. on the scheduled day. See row 470 of table 450 in FIG. 4. If that
same person calls in using that phone number after 9:30 a.m., however,
providing the temporary password "123456" will result in the person being
denied access to the call. Similarly, if a participant who has been given
the temporary password "349056" calls in prior to the scheduled 9:30 a.m.
starting time, or after the 10:30 a.m. ending time, this temporary
password will not work and the person will be denied access.

[0036]Data structure 450 may be implemented, for example, using a linked
list or array data structure. In one approach, a separate data structure
450 is linked to, or otherwise associated with, each row from data
structure 400 for which temporary passwords are stored. In another
approach, column 415 may provide a pointer into a single data structure
450 that is shared among the rows of data structure 400. Entries in data
structure 450 may be purged, if desired, when the time interval
represented by that row has elapsed.

[0037]FIG. 5 provides a flowchart depicting logic which may be used when
implementing an embodiment of the present invention for managing
participation in a conference call. The conference call starts (Block
500) and the password to be used in the conference call is retrieved
(Block 505). Preferably, this comprises using the call-in phone number as
an index to access a data structure such as data structure 400 of FIG. 4.
If the temporary password column 415 is empty for this call-in number,
then Block 505 preferably retrieves the default password stored in column
410. Otherwise, when the temporary password column 415 is not empty,
Block 505 preferably accesses a data structure such as data structure 450
(e.g., by following a link provided in column 415) to determine whether
an entry is stored therein that matches the current time period (i.e.,
the current date and current time of day). If a matching entry is found,
then the temporary password stored in column 465 of that entry is
retrieved in Block 505. If there is no matching time period entry in data
structure 465, then Block 505 preferably retrieves the default password
stored in column 410 for the call-in phone number.

[0038]Optionally, a configuration parameter may be used in the matching
process that searches through data structure 465, whereby a particular
amount of time is applied as a tolerance value for determining whether a
matching time period entry is located. For example, if the current time
of day is 8:55 a.m. but the earliest starting time period represented in
data structure 450 is 9:00 a.m., then it may be presumed that the caller
is calling in early for the upcoming scheduled conference call. The
configuration parameter may indicate, for example, that calls up to 8
minutes early are to be considered as matching the upcoming time period.
In this case, Block 505 returns the temporary password stored in column
465 of the entry from data structure 450 which matches when considering
the tolerance value.

[0039]Block 510 tests whether a temporary password was detected. If so,
then this temporary password will be used for authenticating callers, as
indicated in Block 515; otherwise, the default password will be used for
authentication, as indicated by Block 520. In either case, the conference
call then proceeds using the indicated authentication approach (Block
530).

[0040]From the perspective of the participants in the conference call,
upon calling in to the call-in number provided in the conference call
invitation, each participant provides the password from his or her
conference call invitation. The participant does not need to know whether
this is the default password or a temporary password. The conference call
provider system then uses the participant-provided password to
authenticate the participant for access to the conference call. As
described with reference to FIG. 5, this preferably comprises (1)
comparing the participant-provided password to the temporary password
associated with current time period, or (2) comparing the
participant-provided password to the default password for the call-in
phone number otherwise (that is, when no temporary passwords are
associated with this call-in number also when no temporary password
applies to the current time period). If the participant-provided password
matches during the comparison, then this participant is granted access to
the conference call; otherwise, the participant is denied access.

[0041]Data structures 400 and 450 may be stored by a conference call
provider, with entries stored therein for a plurality of call-in numbers
which are managed by that conference call provider (and each of these
call-in numbers may be allocated to a different conference call host). In
this case, the conference call provider may carry out the participation
management depicted in FIG. 5 by checking data structure 400 (and data
structure 450, when applicable) for stored password information for each
incoming participation request. Data structures of this form may also, or
alternatively, be stored by an electronic calendar application to record
the information needed for generating meeting invitations.

[0042]While embodiments of the present invention have been described with
reference to scheduling conference calls from an electronic calendar
application, this is by way of illustration and not of limitation. As
alternatives, conference calls may be scheduled using other types of
collaboration software or other types of groupware.

[0043]As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, embodiments of
the present invention may be provided as (for example) methods, systems,
and/or computer program products. The invention can take the form of an
entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment, or an
embodiment containing both hardware and software elements. In a preferred
embodiment, the invention is implemented in software, which includes (but
is not limited to) firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.
Furthermore, the present invention may take the form of a computer
program product which is embodied on one or more computer-usable storage
media (including, but not limited to, disk storage, CD-ROM, optical
storage, and so forth) having computer-usable program code embodied
therein, where this computer program product may be used by or in
connection with a computer or any instruction execution system. For
purposes of this description, a computer-usable or computer-readable
medium can be any apparatus that can contain, store, communicate,
propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with the
instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0044]The medium may be an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic,
infrared, or semiconductor system (or apparatus or device) or a
propagation medium. Examples of a computer-readable medium include a
semiconductor or solid state memory, magnetic tape, a removable computer
diskette, a random access memory ("RAM"), a read-only memory ("ROM"), a
rigid magnetic disk, and an optical disk. Current examples of optical
disks include compact disk read-only memory ("CD-ROM"), compact disk
read/write ("CD-R/W"), and DVD.

[0045]Referring now to FIG. 6, a data processing system 600 suitable for
storing and/or executing program code includes at least one processor 612
coupled directly or indirectly to memory elements through a system bus
614. The memory elements can include local memory 628 employed during
actual execution of the program code, bulk storage 630, and cache
memories (not shown) which provide temporary storage of at least some
program code in order to reduce the number of times code must be
retrieved from bulk storage during execution.

[0046]Input/output ("I/O") devices (including but not limited to keyboards
618, displays 624, pointing devices 620, other interface devices 622,
etc.) can be coupled to the system either directly or through intervening
I/O controllers or adapters (616, 626).

[0047]Network adapters may also be coupled to the system to enable the
data processing system to become coupled to other data processing systems
or remote printers or storage devices through intervening private or
public networks (as shown generally at 632). Modems, cable modem
attachments, wireless adapters, and Ethernet cards are just a few of the
currently-available types of network adapters.

[0048]FIG. 7 illustrates a data processing network environment 700 in
which the present invention may be practiced. The data processing network
700 may include a plurality of individual networks, such as wireless
network 742 and network 744. A plurality of wireless devices 710 may
communicate over wireless network 742, and a plurality of wired devices,
shown in the figure (by way of illustration) as workstations 711, may
communicate over network 744. Additionally, as those skilled in the art
will appreciate, one or more local area networks ("LANs") may be included
(not shown), where a LAN may comprise a plurality of devices coupled to a
host processor.

[0049]Still referring to FIG. 7, the networks 742 and 744 may also include
mainframe computers or servers, such as a gateway computer 746 or
application server 747 (which may access a data repository 748). A
gateway computer 746 serves as a point of entry into each network, such
as network 744. The gateway 746 may be preferably coupled to another
network 742 by means of a communications link 750a. The gateway 746 may
also be directly coupled to one or more workstations 711 using a
communications link 750b, 750c, and/or may be indirectly coupled to such
devices. The gateway computer 746 may be implemented utilizing an
Enterprise Systems Architecture/390® computer available from IBM.
Depending on the application, a midrange computer, such as an Application
System/400® (also known as an AS/400®) may be employed.
("Enterprise Systems Architecture/390", "Application System/400", and
"AS/400" are registered trademarks of IBM in the United States, other
countries, or both.)

[0050]The gateway computer 746 may also be coupled 749 to a storage device
(such as data repository 748).

[0051]Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the gateway computer
746 may be located a great geographic distance from the network 742, and
similarly, the wireless devices 710 and/or workstations 711 may be
located some distance from the networks 742 and 744, respectively. For
example, the network 742 may be located in California, while the gateway
746 may be located in Texas, and one or more of the workstations 711 may
be located in Florida. The wireless devices 710 may connect to the
wireless network 742 using a networking protocol such as the Transmission
Control Protocol/Internet Protocol ("TCP/IP") over a number of
alternative connection media, such as cellular phone, radio frequency
networks, satellite networks, etc. The wireless network 742 preferably
connects to the gateway 746 using a network connection 750a such as TCP
or User Datagram Protocol ("UDP") over IP, X.25, Frame Relay, Integrated
Services Digital Network ("ISDN"), Public Switched Telephone Network
("PSTN"), etc. The workstations 711 may connect directly to the gateway
746 using dial connections 750b or 750c. Further, the wireless network
742 and network 744 may connect to one or more other networks (not
shown), in an analogous manner to that depicted in FIG. 7.

[0052]The present invention has been described with reference to flow
diagrams and/or block diagrams according to embodiments of the invention.
It will be understood that each flow and/or block of the flow diagrams
and/or block diagrams, and combinations of flows and/or blocks in the
flow diagrams and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer
program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided
to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer,
embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to
produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the
processor of the computer or other programmable data processing
apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in the
flow diagram flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

[0053]These computer program instructions may also be stored in a
computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable
data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that
the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an
article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the
function specified in the flow diagram flow or flows and/or block diagram
block or blocks.

[0054]The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer
or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of
operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable
apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the
instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable
apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the
flow diagram flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

[0055]While embodiments of the present invention have been described,
additional variations and modifications in those embodiments may occur to
those skilled in the art once they learn of the basic inventive concepts.
Therefore, it is intended that the appended claims shall be construed to
include the described embodiments and all such variations and
modifications as fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.